Many celebrities embrace social and political causes. But singer-songwriter NINA SIMONE (born Eunice Waymon, 1933—2003), a prominent figure at Civil Rights marches and author of the 1964 song “Mississippi Goddam” (“You don’t have to live next to me,/just give me my equality!”), was an activist first and foremost. “I was half-crazy with anger… a woman on fire,” she writes, about the Sixties, in her autobiography, “and that was how I felt most of the time as I watched my people struggling for their rightful place in America.” Best known today for her epic 1965 version of the traditional African American spiritual song “Sinnerman,” Simone was a passionate advocate for any action that would elevate the standing of African-Americans — and that passion got her into trouble. When she refused to pay her taxes in protest against the Vietnam War, she was forced to flee to Barbados. Her tumultuous life and vehement protests against inequality informed Simone’s stunning vocal performances, making her a hero to music fans and human rights activists alike.

About the Author

Tucker Cummings is a writer whose projects include The Strange Adventures of Margery Jones, a 365-part fiction serial about parallel universes. She also has a microfiction piece featured in The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities. Hers was the winning story in HiLobrow’s kooky-spooky fiction contest.